Presidential candidate Senator Christopher “Bong” Go on Friday, Nov. 5 urged President Duterte to give the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) authority to release excise tax proceeds on locally manufactured Virginia-type cigarettes for fiscal years 2018 and 2019 to local government units (LGUs).
Go said the tobacco excise tax shares received by beneficiary LGUs would encourage required economic activity in the agricultural sector—especially in light of recent natural disasters that hit tobacco-producing provinces.
“Dahil po sa mga narakaraang kalamidad, naapektuhan ang produksyon ng ating mga magsasaka, kabilang na ang mga tobacco farmers. Marami sa kanilang mga pananim ang hindi napakinabangan (The recent calamities affected the production of our farmers, including our tobacco farmers. Many of their harvest could no longer be used),” Go said.
“Sa tulong po nito, mabibigyan natin ng suporta ang mga LGUs upang matulungan ang kanilang mga magsasaka na makabangon mula sa mga problemang kanilang kinaharap (With this budget, we can help support our LGUs to help our farmers rise from the problems that they face),” he stressed.
Citing Section 3 of Republic Act No. 7171, Go said the financial support given by the national government for the beneficiary provinces will be constituted and collected from the proceeds of 15% of the excise taxes on locally manufactured Virginia type of cigarettes. He said the funds would be divided among the beneficiary provinces pro-rata according to the volume of Virgina tobacco production.
Go also noted that the shares of LGUs from fiscal years 2018 and 2019 for collection of excise taxes on locally manufactures Virginia-type cigarettes and Burley and Native tobacco already amount to P24,810,788,000 and P21,277,819,000, respectively.
The senator earlier lauded the agricultural workforces for working hard to help ensure the nation’s economic recovery amid the COVID-19 pandemic and urged the government to further promote the welfare of small-scale farmers.
He also assured agricultural workers he is ready to extend any form of support or assistance to the country’s farmers.